Family Judges are important to us because they make choices every day that determines the outcome of relationships. These are relationships between husbands and wives, parents and children, siblings, blood related families and fictive kinships, and even family violence victims and their abusers. Most people don’t wake up one morning and think, “I want to allow a total stranger to decide if and when I can see my children”. In fact, many can’t bear the thought of something like that ever happening to them. They often get there because of a broken promise. Most of us meet someone and decide that we want to enter into relationship with them, or are born into relationships. Whether chosen or born into a relationship, there is usually some form of promise given to love, honor and cherish that person and the promise usually ends with “for the rest of my life”. Unfortunately, for more of us than we would like, “for the rest of my life” becomes a broken promise. Feeling the betrayal of this broken promise is an emotional pain that can lead to all forms of emotional responses. Sometimes help is sought to repair the relationship by various relationship professionals and when those efforts are successful, Hallelujah and pass the turkey at Thanksgiving again! When they are not successful, the momentum of a broken promise and failed attempts to repair the breach can send individuals into Family Courts feeling wounded, hurt, depressed, angry, possessive, and you fill in the blank. Good people dealing with these emotions come before a judge, for that judge to decide the status of the broken relationship for the rest of the litigants’ lives. This is usually because the litigants have tried to do so for themselves and failed. When you or your loved one stands there, the question is, who do you want as the judge making that decision?
As a Christian and Bronze Star Veteran, I have spent a large portion of my life dealing with people in difficult situations and know that the decisions made in these situations must be done according to the law and in a spirit of compassion. Please see additional pages on this site for more information about my capacity for compassion.